Persona 4 Arena Ultimax

Editor's Notes

Digital copy of the PlayStation 3 version reviewed.

Introduction

Sometimes game series take an interesting turn with new entries. Take the 'Persona' series, for example. As a subseries of the dark 'Shin Megami Tensei' series, 'Persona 3' and 'Persona 4' brought Atlus' flagship series to an entirely new level of popularity. Combining the typically dreary plot of the 'Shin Megami Tensei' games with a bright visual flair and a younger cast of characters, these two hardcore RPGs managed to make quite a splash fans of the genre.

Which makes it a little weird that the sequel to these two games happens to be a fighting title. Atlus teamed up with Arc System Works to create 'Persona 4 Arena', a 2D fighting game featuring characters from 'Persona 3' and 'Persona 4'. The game's story left off on a bit of a cliffhanger, so as a result Atlus created 'Persona 4 Arena Ultimax' to finish off the series' storyline, while adding some new (but familiar) faces to the mix.

The Game Itself: Our Reviewer's Take

Since 'Persona 4 Arena Ultimax' is a sequel/off-shoot to what is a content-packed 70-hour long RPG, the game's Story Mode will likely be the main draw for 'Persona' fans. The plot makes the characters from 'Persona 4' the main focus, as Episode P4 follows the protagonists as a new threat quickly descends on the town of Inaba.

Without going too far into the story's details, as they are chock full of spoilers for 'Persona 4 Arena', the plot in itself is serviceable. The story is a bit on the long side, with Episode P4 lasting at least five hours, but the story does sum up the plot from the original Arena game well enough. I did find that, because the episode was split in a way that made me jump between a few groups of characters, sometimes the dialogue would get a little redundant. As the groups are separated, they all tend to come to the same conclusions about what is going on around them, and the game sees fit to make them verbalize these conclusions multiple times. While it does make sense from the plot's scenario, it can still make the already lengthy story scenes feel redundant.

After Episode P4 is finished, Episode P3 is unlocked, which follows the cast of 'Persona 3' during the events of 'P4AU'. There are some interesting prologue bits that help to show what some of the characters were doing in the gap of time between 'Persona 3' and this game, but other than that Episode P3 is the same general plot with a different set of characters to play as. However, beating both episodes in its entirety is the only way to view the true ending, so while it may feel tedious, playing through both episodes is recommended.

With all of this emphasis on story, it might be easy to forget that 'Persona 4 Arena Ultimax' is a fighting game, and really it's in the simple, yet deep fighting mechanics that the title really shines. The four face buttons are used for various attacks, and combos are achieved by a combination of directional input and proper button timing. But, while most games force you to learn the many complex inputs the hard way, 'P4AU' offers some simpler solutions for fighting game newbies. For starters, simply pressing the same button repeatedly can start an auto-combo, which is a nice way to get semi-decent combos out without precision. This might sound as though it would be unbalanced for button mashers as opposed to those that try to learn the system, but the auto-combos are far from the most effective way to dispatch your opponent, and many veterans will be able to block or counter the combos.

In addition, almost every character in the game has a Shadow version to play as, which ups the ante a bit. Shadow characters do not have access to these auto-combos, nor the Burst move which can be used to stop an opponent's combo. Instead, they have slightly different move sets available that leans towards a bit more on the offensive side. These Shadow version provide even more depth and options to those who want to try to learn the mechanics of 'P4AU', with often satisfying results.

It's worth mentioning that beyond Story Mode, there are other modes of 'Persona 4 Arena Ultimax' to enjoy. There's the genre staples, of course: Arcade Mode is streamlined and involves little to no story, Practice Mode will let you learn the convoluted button combinations with dummy opponents, and Challenge Mode forces you to learn every aspect of a character to complete it.

The true newcomer, though, is the Golden Arena mode. In this mode, your chosen character works through a 'dungeon' full of enemies and bosses. By doing so, the character will earn experience and level up, eventually learning new skills to help survive the gauntlet. It's very interesting, as it feels like a perfect blend of the game's fighting elements with the series' RPG roots. I feel it can sometimes get a little boring, as at first I was leveling up far faster than the enemies I was fighting in the dungeon, but the boss encounters and their boosted levels and better skill spreads help to break any monotony the Golden Arena mode might have fallen pretty to.